Battle of Tarawa

The Battle of Tarawa was a major battle of the Pacific theater of World War II, taking place from 20 to 23 November 1943. General Julian C. Smith was tasked with leading 35,000 US Army troops and 18,000 US Marine Corps troops to capture the island of Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands, facing a heavily-fortified garrison of 2,619 troops and 2,200 Japanese and orean laborers. The Japanese general Keiji Shibazaki famously quipped, "It would take a million men one hundred years to conquer Tarawa". Faulty intelligence about the shoreline led to American landing vehicles being grounded in the shallow waters of Tarawa, and several marines were killed before even reaching the beach. The Americans were then pinned down on the beach, and it took armored support and flamethrowers to drive the Japanese forces back. Pockets of Japanese resistance fought the Americans until 23 November 1943, and only 17 Japanese soldiers were taken alive; 129 laborers were captured by the Americans as well. In just 76 hours, the Americans lost 1,696 dead and 2,101 wounded, very high casualties for taking an island the size of New York City's Central Park.